FAITH AM MAM HACK I? LAW SPECIFICATION OF PATENT APPLICATION COUNTRY AUSTRALIA TYPE Innovation Patent TITLE Gutter Spacer Clip APPLICANTS) BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION Innovation Patent Applicant(s): BLUESCOPE STEEL LIMITED Invention Title: Gutter Spacer Clip The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method for performing it known to me/us: - 1 GUTTER SPACER CLIP Field of the Invention 5 The invention relates to a gutter spacer clip that is adapted to fit over and be retained on a rear wall of a gutter to space the gutter from a roof fascia so that there is a gap between the gutter and the fascia. 10 The invention also relates to a guttering assembly that includes a gutter, a gutter bracket mounting the gutter to a roof fascia, and a gutter spacer clip fitted over and retained on a rear wall of the gutter and spacing the gutter from the fascia so that there is a gap between 15 the gutter and the fascia. Background of the Invention Guttering for collecting rainwater from a roof of a 20 building generally includes a gutter in the form of an open-top channel located below a perimeter of the roof. Such location of the guttering ensures that rainwater running off the roof is collected in the guttering. The open-top channel is formed with a front wall disposed away 25 from the roof and a rear wall which is mounted to the building, for example via a fascia which, in turn, is attached to an upper edge of the building below the perimeter of the roof. The front and rear walls are joined by a pan and, collectively, form the channel. 30 Drainage openings are formed in the pan to allow rainwater collected in the guttering to escape via downpipes to storm water drains or other water collection or disposal systems. In order to ensure that rainwater runs into the guttering, the guttering is arranged such that the roof 35 extends over the rear wall of the gutter and into a region above the channel. 3030553_1 (GHMatlers) P90023.AU -2 The front and rear walls of the gutter extend upwardly from the pan. However, the front wall is higher than the rear wall to conceal the edges of the roof from view for aesthetic reasons. In the event that drainage 5 apertures in the pan become blocked, the channel may fill with rainwater to the extent that rainwater overflows the rear wall and fascia to enter the building. This is a problem, both in terms of water damage to the building and in terms of inconvenience to the building occupants. 10 The invention is concerned with providing a gutter spacer clip that can space a gutter away from a fascia and thereby minimise the possibility of overflow from a guttering into a building. 15 Reference to any prior art in the specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form of suggestion that this prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia or any other 20 country. Summary of the Invention The invention provides a gutter spacer clip that is 25 adapted to fit over and be retained on a rear wall of a gutter to space the gutter from a roof fascia so that there is a gap between the gutter and the fascia, the gutter spacer clip including two arms that, in use, contact opposite surfaces of the gutter rear wall, with a 30 first arm being positioned between the gutter rear wall and the fascia and determining the gap between these components, and with a second arm including a formation that is adapted to cooperate with the gutter rear wall to retain the clip on the gutter rear wall. 35 The gutter spacer clip is not adapted to mount the gutter to the fascia. The gutter spacer clip is designed 335531 (GHMatters) P90023.AU - 3 to be used with a separate gutter bracket designed to mount the gutter to the fascia. The length of the first arm of the gutter spacer clip 5 may be selected to be substantially the same as the height of the gutter rear wall to ensure that the gap between the gutter and the fascia is maintained for the whole height of the gutter rear wall. 10 The length of the first arm of the gutter spacer clip may be selected so that, in use, the formation cooperates with the gutter rear wall to retain the clip on the gutter rear wall at an upper section of the gutter rear wall. 15 The first arm of the gutter spacer clip may be selected to be a longer arm than the second arm. The formation may be in the form of a C-shaped rib formed in the second arm. 20 The gutter rear wall may include a rib extending along the length of the gutter and the gutter spacer clip and the rib may be formed so that, in use, the formation of the second arm of the gutter spacer clip engages and 25 cooperates with the rib to retain the gutter spacer clip on the gutter rear wall. The gutter rear wall may include any other suitable formation, such as dimples or other projections on the rear wall, that can be engaged by the formation'of the second arm of the clip to retain the 30 gutter spacer clip on the gutter rear wall. The gutter spacer may be made from a resilient material. 35 The arms of the gutter spacer clip may be adapted to clamp onto oppositely-facing surfaces of the gutter rear wall. The arms may be adapted for such clamping action 3038553_1 (GHMatter) P90023.AU -4 due to the resilience of the arms. The arms may be otherwise formed to provide the clamping action. The invention also provides a guttering assembly for 5 a building, the guttering assembly including a gutter, a plurality of gutter brackets mounting the gutter to a roof fascia of the building, and a plurality of the gutter spacer clip described above fitted over and retained on a rear wall of the gutter and spacing the gutter from the 10 fascia so that there is a gap between the gutter and the fascia. The length of the first arm of the gutter spacer clip may be selected to be substantially the same as the height 15 of the gutter rear wall to ensure that the gap between the gutter and the fascia is maintained for the whole height of the gutter rear wall. The gutter rear wall may include a rib extending 20 along the length of the gutter and the gutter spacer clip and the rib may be formed so that the formation of the second arm of the gutter spacer clip engages and cooperates with the rib and thereby contributes to retaining the gutter spacer clip on the gutter rear wall. 25 The gutter rear wall may include any other suitable formation, , such as dimples or other projections on the rear wall, that can be engaged by the formation of the second arm of the clip to retain the gutter spacer clip on the gutter rear wall. 30 The gutter spacer may be made from a resilient material. The arms of the gutter spacer clip may be adapted to 35 clamp onto oppositely-facing surfaces of the gutter rear wall and thereby contribute to retaining the clip on the gutter rear wall. The arms may be adapted for such 38305531 (GHMaTters) P90023.AU -5 clamping action due to the resilience of the arms. The arms may be otherwise formed to provide the clamping action. 5 The gap between the rear wall and the fascia may be at least 1 mm. The gap between the rear wall and the fascia may be at least 2 mm. 10 The gutter may include an open-top channel formed by front and rear walls linked by a pan for allowing rainwater to run from the roof into the channel. 15 The rear wall of the gutter may extend to a height above the pan that is less than the height of the front wall above the pan. The gutter bracket may be any suitable bracket. 20 The present invention also provides a building that includes the above-described guttering assembly mounted to a fascia on a wall of the building. 25 The building may include a plurality of the gutter spacer clips at spaced intervals along the length of the gutter. The building may include a plurality of the gutter 30 brackets at spaced intervals along the length of the gutter. Brief Description of the Drawings 35 The invention is now described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: 3836553_1 (GHMaters) P90023.AU - 6 Figure 1 is a diagrammatic vertical cross-section through one embodiment of a guttering assembly in accordance with the present invention; 5 Figure 2 is a perspective view of the gutter spacer clip shown in Figure 1; and; Figure 3 is a side view of the gutter spacer clip 10 shown in Figures 2 and 3. Detailed Description of the Embodiments The guttering assembly 10 in accordance with an 15 embodiment of the invention is shown in Figure 1 mounted to a fascia 8 of a building (not shown), with a roof 6 of the building extending to a position to deliver rainwater into the guttering assembly 10. 20 The guttering assembly 10 shown in Figure 1 includes: (a) a gutter 12, (b) a plurality of gutter brackets 14 (only one of 25 which is shown in the Figure) mounting the gutter to the fascia 8, and (c) a plurality of gutter spacer clips 18 (only one of which is shown in the Figure) fitted over and 30 retained on the gutter 12 and spacing the gutter 12 from the fascia 8 so that there is a gap, typically of the order of 2 mm, between the gutter 12 and the fascia 8. 35 The gutter brackets 14 and the gutter spacer clips 18 are spaced apart along the length of the gutter 12. The spacing may be any suitable spacing. 3838553. (GHMattOr) P90023AU -7 The gutter 12 includes a front wall 20, a rear wall 22, and a pan 24 linking the front and rear walls 20, 22 and thereby forming an open-top channel. The front wall 5 20 includes an inturned lip 28 extending along the length of the gutter 12. This reinforces the front wall 20 and cooperates with the gutter brackets 14 to mount the gutter 12 to the fascia 8. In addition, the rear wall 22 includes a rib 34 extending along the length of the gutter 10 12. The rib 34 reinforces the rear wall 22 and cooperates with the gutter spacer clip 18 to retain the clip on the gutter 12, as is described further below. The gutter 12 may be formed by roll-forming metal 15 strip that is coated with a corrosion-resistant medium. The gutter 12 may be formed from plastics material or any other suitable material. The gutter bracket 14 is a conventional bracket made 20 by bending a length of spring steel into the shape shown in Figure 1. The gutter bracket 14 is shaped so that a forward end 26 thereof can engage and retain the inturned lip 28 of the front wall 20 of the gutter 12 and a rear section 30 thereof can fit over and by nailed or otherwise 25 fastened to a top wall 32 of the fascia 8. The gutter bracket 14 may be any other suitable shape and be formed from any suitable material. The guttering 10 also includes one or more downpipes 30 (not shown) extending downwardly from the pan 24 for allowing rainwater that collects in the gutter 12 to flow from the gutter via openings (not shown) in the gutter 12 to stormwater drains or storage tanks (not shown) or other suitable rainwater collection or disposal systems. 35 Accordingly, rainwater falling on the roof 6 flows under the influence of gravity downwardly along the 3838553_1 (GHMatters) P90023.AU -8 incline of the roof 6 and into the channel defined by the gutter 12. In this manner, rainwater is collected in the guttering 10 for transfer to drainage pipes that lead to, for example, stormwater drains or storage tanks. 5 The above-described construction of the gutter 12 and the gutter bracket 14 of the guttering assembly 10 and the above-described construction of the fascia 8 and the roof 6 are entirely conventional. 10 The gutter spacer clip 18 is essentially a peg-shaped member that is formed from plastics material or any other suitable material, such as spring steel. The gutter spacer clip 18 is designed to fit over the rear wall 22 of 15 the gutter 12 and to space the gutter 12 from the fascia 8 so that there is the gap shown in Figure 1 between the rear wall 22 of the gutter 12 and the fascia 8. It can be appreciated that providing a plurality of the gutter spacer clips 18 at spaced intervals, typically at least 25 20 cm spacings, along the length of the gutter 12 results in a plurality of regions between the gutter 12 and the fascia 8 through which rainwater overflowing the rear wall 22 can flow downwardly to the ground rather than into the building. Accordingly, water damage is minimized by 25 providing the regions between the gutter spacer clips 18. With particular reference to Figures 2 and 3, the gutter spacer clip 18 includes two arms 36, 38 that, in use, contact opposite surfaces of the gutter rear wall 22 30 (as shown in Figure 1). The arrangement is such that a first arm 36 is adapted to be positioned between the gutter rear wall 22 and the fascia 8 and thereby determine the spacing and 35 therefore the gap between these components. The length of the second arm 88 is selected to be 3830553_ (GHMatters) P90023.AU - 9 substantially the same as the height of the rear wall 22 of the gutter 12 so that the gap between the gutter 12 and the fascia 8 is maintained for the whole of the height of the gutter rear wall 22. 5 The second arm 38 includes a C-shaped formation 42 at the end thereof that, in use, cooperates with the rib 34 of the gutter rear wall 22 to retain the clip 18 on the gutter 12. In effect, the C-shaped formation 42 is a rib 10 in the second arm 38. More particularly, the positions and the profiles of the rib 34 of the gutter rear wall 22 and the C-shaped formation 42 of the gutter spacer clip 18 are such that 15 the C-shaped formation 42 rides over the rib 34 when the gutter spacer clip 18 is pushed downwardly onto the gutter rear wall 22 to position the gutter spacer clip 18 onto the gutted rear wall 22. The gutter spacer clip 18 is formed as a resilient member. As a consequence, the 20 initial contact of the downwardly moving second arm 38 of the gutter spacer clip 18 with the rib 34 causes the second arm 38 to be deflected outwardly. As downward movement continues, after the C-shaped formation 42 passes over the rib 34, the resilience of the gutter spacer clip 25 18 deflects the second arm 38 inwardly so that the C shaped formation 42 becomes located below the rib 34. It can be appreciated that in this location of the C-shaped formation 42, the rib 34 acts as a barrier to upward movement disengaging the gutter spacer clip 18 from the 30 gutter rear wall 22. More specifically, in order to disengage the gutter spacer clip 18 from the gutter rear wall 22, it is necessary for any upward force to be sufficient to move the second arm 38 outwardly over the C shaped formation 42 against the resilience of the gutter 35 space clip 18. In effect, the resilience of the gutter spacer clip 18 provides the clamping force for retaining the clip 18 in position on the gutter 12 and the 38385531 (GHMalters) P90023.AU - 10 arrangement of the rib 34 and the C-shaped formation 42 further contributes to retaining the gutter spacer clip 18 in position on the gutter 12. 5 The shape of the C-shaped formation 42 is such that there is a smooth as opposed to a sudden outward and then inward deflection of the formation as it moves over the rib 34 of the gutter rear wall 22 to minimise the possibility of damage to the surface of the gutter rear 10 wall 22 that may affect the corrosion performance of the gutter 12. In addition, it is noted that the length of the second arm 38 may be selected as required, having regard 15 to the shape and size of the rib 34 of the gutter rear wall 22, so that the forces required to deflect the second arm 38 are within an acceptable range. The gutter spacer clip 18 may be any suitable 20 dimensions. Typically, the clip 18 is 2-3 cm wide and the longer arm, namely the first arm 36, is 5-7 cm long. One of the features of the guttering assembly of the invention, which is evident from the embodiment described 25 with reference to the Figures, is that the gutter spacer clip 18 is not adapted to mount the gutter 12 to the fascia 8 and is a separate component to the gutter bracket 14. As a consequence, each of the gutter spacer clip 18 and the gutter bracket 14 can be optimised for their 30 primary functions, one to act as a spacer and the other to mount the gutter 12 to the fascia 8. In addition, providing separate components simplifies manufacture of the components. 35 Many modifications may be made-to the embodiments of the present invention described above with reference to the Figures without departing from the spirit and scope of 38385531 (GHMatters) P90023 AU - 11 the present invention. By way of example, whilst the embodiment of the gutter spacer clip 18 shown in the Figures includes a 5 second arm 38 having a C-shaped formation 42, it can readily be appreciated that the invention is not confined to this shape of formation and extends to any shape of formation that forces the second arm 38 of the gutter spacer clip 18 to deflect outwardly when the gutter spacer 10 clip 18 is pushed onto the gutter rear wall 22. It is noted that in many situations it will be preferable for the formation to be shaped so that there is a smooth as opposed to a sudden outward and then inward deflection of the formation as it moves over the rib 34 of the gutter 15 rear wall 22 to minimise the possibility of damage to the surface of the gutter rear wall 22 that may affect the corrosion performance of the gutter 12. By way of further example, whilst the gutter rear 20 wall 22 of the gutter 12 includes a rib 34 that cooperates with the C-shaped formation 42 of the second arm 38 of the gutter spacer clip 18, the present invention is not so limited and extends to any suitable formation that can cooperate,with the clip formation 42. Other suitable 25 formations include dimples or other projections on the gutter rear wall 22. By way of further example, whilst the embodiment of the gutter spacer clip 18 shown in the Figures includes a 30 first arm 36 that has a constant thickness along the length of the arm 36 so that there is a constant gap width between the gutter rear wall 22 and the facsia 8, it can readily be appreciated that the invention is not confined to this arrangement and, by way of example, extends to 35 first arms 36 that are wedge-shaped so that the gap width increases along the length of the arms 36. This feature is advantageous in terms of assisting in preventing 38385531 (GHMatters) P98023.AU - 12 entrapment of debris, such as leaf litter, in the gap between the gutter rear wall 22 and the facsia 8. 383a5531 (GHMatters) P90023.AU